Sunday, 18 October 2015

New York touchdown

After seven hours in the air we touched down at Newark airport with the Manhattan skyline visible a few miles away - our big trip of 2015 has started.

Views north and south from the Rockerfeller Centre

Our taxi deposited us near Radio City Apartments, our Midtown hotel with the temperature hovering in the unseasonal middle 20's. So, under a cloudless sky we decided to get get our bearings and a panoramic view of New York from the nearest landmark skyscraper, the top of the Rockerfeller Centre. This 70 story colossus was erected in the depression years of the 30's and offers fine views downtown past the Empire State and North over Central Park with the higgledy piggledy collection of skyscrapers all around.

Perhaps the most striking thing as we stood there surveying the scene was the noise. The cars and busses were mostly hidden from view in the canyons beneath us but the drone of the air conditioners carrying through the still air was formidable. New York may be many things but one of them isn't quiet!

Get that stubble! A selfie at the end of a very long day

We spent the evening in trashy Times Square, as subtle as a brick and right down there with Picadilly Circus in London. The area is a mix of glitz and garish and we had our first meal at the Bubba Gump shrimp restaurant - tacky and commercial but quite a lot of fun at the same time. I hit my all time record for a beer - just a sniff under £10! I suppose I should be grateful I got to keep the glass....

Times Square October 2015

With jet lag weighing down on us we were asleep well before 10.00pm, largely unaware of the noise and bustle beneath our 49'th street apartment.